Kru

The Kru are an African ethnic group that originated in eastern Liberia. 251,000 live in Liberia, 14,000 in Cote d'Ivoire, and 6,000 in Sierra Leone, and most are either Christian or animist. The Kru people were known for their navigating skills and were more valuable as traders and sailors than slaves; they tattooed their foreheads and the bridges of their noses with indigo to show that they were free and not slaves. Today, they make up 7% of the Liberian population.